Parasite poster

Parasite

2019132 minutesR
4
Arcplot Score
πŸ“ Unconventional
Unverified
⭐ 8.5IMDb
πŸ… 99%Rotten Tomatoes
Ⓜ️ 97/100Metacritic
🎬 8.5TMDb
πŸ“Š 17.6Popularity
πŸ†Won 4 Oscars. 309 wins & 260 nominations total
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Directed by: Bong Joon-ho
The Kims - mother and father Chung-sook and Ki-taek, and their young adult offspring, son Ki-woo and daughter Ki-jung - are a poor family living in a shabby and cramped half basement apartment in a busy lower working class commercial district of Seoul. Without even knowing it, they, especially Mr. and Mrs. Kim, literally smell of poverty. Often as a collective, they perpetrate minor scams to get by, and even when they have jobs, they do the minimum work required. Ki-woo is the one who has dreams of getting out of poverty by one day going to university. Despite not having that university education, Ki-woo is chosen by his university student friend Min, who is leaving to go to school, to take over his tutoring job to Park Da-hye, who Min plans to date once he returns to Seoul and she herself is in university. The Parks are a wealthy family who for four years have lived in their modernistic house designed by and the former residence of famed architect Namgoong. While Mr. and Mrs. Park are all about status, Mrs. Park has a flighty, simpleminded mentality and temperament, which Min tells Ki-woo to feel comfortable in lying to her about his education to get the job. In getting the job, Ki-woo further learns that Mrs. Park is looking for an art therapist for the Parks' adolescent son, Da-song, Ki-woo quickly recommending his professional art therapist friend "Jessica", really Ki-jung who he knows can pull off the scam in being the easiest liar of the four Kims. In Ki-woo also falling for Da-hye, he begins to envision himself in that house, and thus the Kims as a collective start a plan for all the Kims, like Ki-jung using assumed names, to replace existing servants in the Parks' employ in orchestrating reasons for them to be fired. The most difficult to get rid of may be Moon-gwang, the Parks' housekeeper who literally came with the house - she Namgoong's housekeeper when he lived there - and thus knows all the little nooks and crannies of it better than the Parks themselves. The question then becomes how far the Kims can take this scam in their quest to become their version of the Parks.

Box Office

Budget:$11.4M
Revenue:$257.6M
Profit:$246.2M

Arcplot Score Breakdown

Beat Timing Precision4.1/10
Emotional Arc Impact3/10
Thematic Consistency5/10
Overall Score4/10

Beat Sheet

15 plot points

Parasite Arcplot
1
Opening Image
1 min
2
Theme Stated
10 min
3
Set-Up
20 min
4
Catalyst
35 min
5
Debate
50 min
6
Break Into Two
60 min
7
B Story
70 min
8
Fun and Games
85 min
9
Midpoint
95 min
10
Bad Guys Close In
105 min
11
All Is Lost
115 min
12
Dark Night of the Soul
120 min
13
Break Into Three
125 min
14
Finale
130 min
15
Final Image
132 min

Emotional Arc

+100-10

Plot Points

#1

Opening Image

1 min

Kim family struggling in semi-basement apartment. Poverty, ingenuity, and tension established.

#2

Theme Stated

10 min

Theme: class disparity and survival. β€œThey are so rich.” Reflects desire and envy.

#3

Set-Up

20 min

Ki-woo gets tutoring job with Park family. Introduction to opulent lifestyle and contrasts. Stakes and conflict hinted.

#4

Catalyst

35 min

Ki-woo recommends sister for art therapy tutoring. Family begins infiltrating household.

#5

Debate

50 min

Kim family debates ethics of deception. Moral tension vs opportunity. Survival instincts dominate.

#6

Break Into Two

60 min

Kim family secures multiple jobs within Park household. Crossing threshold into deception and infiltration.

#7

B Story

70 min

Romantic tension between Ki-woo and Park daughter. Emotional stakes. Family loyalty tested.

#8

Fun and Games

85 min

Kim family enjoys luxuries, manipulates events, and outsmarts the Parks. Humor and suspense escalate.

#9

Midpoint

95 min

Former housekeeper returns to basement. Dark secrets revealed. False sense of security shattered.

#10

Bad Guys Close In

105 min

Conflict escalates. Kim family trapped. Secrets collide. Threat of violence rises.

#11

All Is Lost

115 min

Basement man attacks. Chaos in Park home. Hope seems lost.

#12

Dark Night of the Soul

120 min

Kim family emotionally crushed. Realization of limits, mortality, and consequences.

#13

Break Into Three

125 min

Family attempts escape, confrontation ensues. Climax preparation.

#14

Finale

130 min

Violence peaks at party. Ki-taek exacts revenge. Social commentary realized.

#15

Final Image

132 min

Kim family fragmented. Dream of reunion distant. Stark contrast to opening life. Moral and societal reflection complete.